Career studio / DevOps
Build evidence for the Junior DevOps Engineer role
A team manually packages a simple learning app and cannot reproduce yesterday’s release. Build a versioned local delivery workflow with explicit test and rollback steps.
Your outcome: Local delivery pipeline specification, container setup and release runbook.
Start with the right expectations
Who this is for
Git, command-line basics and one small application you can run locally.
This path develops a demonstrable work sample for the named role. It does not replace employer-specific experience, professional qualifications or supervised practice.
Plan your study time
Use a flexible six-week project schedule: one week for each of the first four stages and two weeks for the portfolio and review. Allow roughly 3–5 hours per week for the case work, in addition to course study. This is a planning suggestion, not a measured course duration or a promise of job readiness.
Read the course access notes before starting. Free viewing or reading does not automatically include certificates, graded assessments, software licences or paid cloud resources. Core case work can be documented with a free editor and spreadsheet; optional implementation tools may have additional requirements.
Your course sequence
Start in the order below. Use the course outline to select the sections relevant to the stage tasks, and complete foundation exercises before moving on. Full provider courses can be substantially longer than this project schedule. These are course resources, not a claimed count of individual lessons.
Resource 01 / IBM
Free DevOps Course: CI/CD, SRE and Infrastructure as Code
Purpose: Build the foundations. Connect your notes to the case tasks below rather than only collecting completion marks.
Access: Free Video
Certificate: Free video viewing; IBM certification is not included
Resource 02 / Google
Free Git and GitHub Course by Google
Purpose: Develop the role-specific method. Connect your notes to the case tasks below rather than only collecting completion marks.
Access: Free Video
Certificate: Free video viewing; a Google certificate is not included
Resource 03 / Simplilearn
Free Simplilearn Course: Docker Containers, Compose and Deployment
Purpose: Strengthen practical application. Connect your notes to the case tasks below rather than only collecting completion marks.
- Explore docker images and containers, installation, Compose, networking and containerized application concepts.
- Follow the selected explanations of Images, Docker Compose and Container Deployment.
- Connect concepts to lessons such as What Is A Docker Container? — Docker Container Tutorial For Beginners — Docker Container.
Access: Free Video
Certificate: Free video viewing; Simplilearn certificate not included
Learn, make, check
Keep a decision log as you work. For each stage, capture the assumption, your work product, a check and the change you made after that check. The acceptance criterion is the stopping condition for the stage.
Stage 1 / suggested project week 1
Make the build reproducible
Understand: Source, dependencies and configuration jointly define a release.
Make: Record version pins, build inputs and a clean-checkout setup command.
Check before moving on: A build does not depend on an undocumented file on your laptop.
Study companion: Free DevOps Course: CI/CD, SRE and Infrastructure as Code. Use its relevant lessons and examples; the independent WikiFree task is not a provider assessment.
Save as evidence: a dated work product and a short note explaining one choice, one alternative and one remaining uncertainty.
Stage 2 / suggested project week 2
Add quality gates
Understand: A pipeline should fail when evidence is insufficient.
Make: Design lint, test and package stages with clear success criteria.
Check before moving on: A failed test blocks promotion in the proposed workflow.
Study companion: Free Git and GitHub Course by Google. Use its relevant lessons and examples; the independent WikiFree task is not a provider assessment.
Save as evidence: a dated work product and a short note explaining one choice, one alternative and one remaining uncertainty.
Stage 3 / suggested project week 3
Package consistently
Understand: Containers package an environment but do not remove application risk.
Make: Write a minimal container specification and identify configuration injected at runtime.
Check before moving on: Secrets do not appear in the image or repository.
Study companion: Free Simplilearn Course: Docker Containers, Compose and Deployment. Use its relevant lessons and examples; the independent WikiFree task is not a provider assessment.
Save as evidence: a dated work product and a short note explaining one choice, one alternative and one remaining uncertainty.
Stage 4 / suggested project week 4
Plan rollback
Understand: A release process includes recovery and ownership.
Make: Write a release checklist and rollback decision for a bad build.
Check before moving on: Explain database compatibility rather than assuming every rollback is safe.
Study companion: Free Simplilearn Course: Docker Containers, Compose and Deployment. Use its relevant lessons and examples; the independent WikiFree task is not a provider assessment.
Save as evidence: a dated work product and a short note explaining one choice, one alternative and one remaining uncertainty.
Stage 5 / suggested project weeks 5–6
Present your portfolio
Assemble the four work products into Local delivery pipeline specification, container setup and release runbook. Write a README explaining the problem, your assumptions, the decisions you made, tests actually performed and what remains incomplete.
Give a five-minute walkthrough: one minute for the problem, two for the work and evidence, one for trade-offs and one for the next improvement. If you have not implemented a proposed system, label it a design or prototype rather than a deployed solution.
Acceptance: a reviewer can locate each work product, reproduce the key reasoning and identify the limits without a private explanation from you.
The portfolio brief
A team manually packages a simple learning app and cannot reproduce yesterday’s release. Build a versioned local delivery workflow with explicit test and rollback steps.
Deliver: Local delivery pipeline specification, container setup and release runbook.
| release | source revision | test result | migration |
|---|---|---|---|
| R 1 | abc 001 | pass | baseline |
| R 2 | abc 002 | fail | none |
| R 3 | abc 003 | pass | adds_required_field |
Use these small inputs to make the reasoning visible. They are not a representative dataset, a real client engagement or evidence of production performance. Where the brief requires additional sample records, create them yourself, label them synthetic and explain why you added them.
The ZIP includes the case CSV, four stage worksheets, course sequence, decision log, test log, portfolio README template, review rubric and reference reasoning. It is a starter kit for your work, not a completed application, professional report or proprietary project file.
Check your reasoning
The app image can be rolled back, but the new database migration is incompatible. Is rollback straightforward?
Write your answer and assumptions before opening the reference.
Read the reference reasoning
No. Review migration compatibility and recovery options before deployment. A previous image alone may not restore a working system.
Portfolio review rubric
| Criterion | Points | Evidence required |
|---|---|---|
| Problem and scope | 4 | A clear user, need, boundary and assumptions |
| Role-specific work | 8 | 2 points for each of the four stage acceptance checks |
| Reasoning and validation | 4 | Independent checks, actual results and uncertainty |
| Communication and reproducibility | 4 | A usable README, source links and reviewable work products |
Aim for at least 16/20 as a self-review target, with no missing stage acceptance check. This is a WikiFree practice rubric, not an industry credential or a hiring assessment.
Interview practice
How would another developer reproduce the exact build you tested?
Answer using the case: context, your action, evidence and limitation. Describe this honestly as a self-directed project. Do not present fictional organizations, invented interviews or practice results as paid work experience.
Your progress
Use this checklist as a personal study aid. Progress is stored in this browser when local storage is available; it is not an account record or a certificate.
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Questions before you start
Will this path qualify me for a job?
It helps you study relevant foundations and produce a work sample. Employers may require additional skills, qualifications and experience. Review actual role requirements before applying; no job or certification is guaranteed.
Are all tools and certificates free?
The linked learning routes were selected for free viewing or reading. Follow the separate access and certificate notes on each course. Paid tools and cloud deployment are optional; document a local design when implementation resources are unavailable.
Can I follow this on a phone?
You can read the path and many learning resources on a phone. Coding, detailed spreadsheet work, design tools and mobile-app development are easier or require a suitable computer. The page is designed to reflow; that is not a claim that every physical device has been tested.
Questions & discussion
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